Spielberg, Eminem & Beatles Game-Changers at E3

Thu., Jun. 4, 2009 2:30 PM PDT by Peter Paras

Kevin Mazur/Getty Images

The video-game industry's star-studded preview expo, E3, dropped eye-popping sci-fi technology and some very A-list music games this week.

It ends today, and had kicked off Monday night with Jay-Z and Eminem headlining a VIP show at the Wiltern Theatre to pimp Guitar Hero spin-off DJ Hero. Other guests/geeks included Kim Kardashian, Leonardo DiCaprio and Matthew McConaughey.

We then headed downtown to the sprawling expo to see what else is gonna be big in games 'n' gadgets. Here's all you need to know:

1. Spielberg thinks his movies are real.

At an Xbox 360 press event, Steven Spielberg was on deck to talk about this thing called Project Natal. The demo promises a technology straight out of Minority Report, with motion capture, face recognition and voice commands. No controller, just your body.

"[The] only way we can bring interactive entertainment to everybody is to make the technology invisible," he told the crowd, touting the not-quite-ready gadget as "significant as the transformation of the square-shaped movie screen to CinemaScope and then to IMAX."

The demo featured an onscreen boy who follows you with his eyes as you move around the room. Creepy—but cool.

2. Music is the new Halo.

Beyond DJ Hero (which also features mash-ups of tracks by Black Eyed Peas and Gorillaz), The Beatles: Rock Band boasts 45 classic songs, and the two remaining Beatles—Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr—stopped by to talk about how much they love the game. Yoko Ono and Dhani Harrison (George's musician son) also stopped by to give their blessings.

3. Pilates is the new Fit.

On the Nintendo side, Daisy Fuentes has a Pilates game that uses the Wii Fit board—or even just a regular Wii controller. She told the E3 crowd that it's perfect for anyone who wants to get "fit," but also, like, features Fuentes in tight outfits. Li'l something for everyone.

4. James Cameron shares a supersecret secret.

The king of the world came to the Ubisoft press event to talk about his long-awaited film Avatar. Naturally, there's a videogame tie-in and, like the film, it's in 3-D.

We got a quick sneak at the game (no cameras!) and can tell you this: It's an immersive third-person shooter, set on a lush, dangerous forest planet teeming with animals and enemies. And very much in 3-D.

5. Mario, Ancient Gods and Hannah Montana are still big.

Plenty of other new games loaded up on hype, such as Super Mario Bros Wii, God of War III, Drake's 2, Heavy Rain and a candy-colored Hannah Montana version of the Playstation Portable due by the end of the year. Gimme.
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